Mercer Advisors Buys First Ohio Planning
Striking fast in the new year, Mercer adds more ERISA talent to its burgeoning business.
Continuing its acquisition streak, Mercer Advisors, an RIA, announced Tuesday it had purchased First Ohio Planning, a Columbus, Ohio-based wealth management firm with $350 million of assets under management.
First Ohio was founded in 1979 by James S. Ryan, who will be joining Mercer along with a staff of five. The group will be merging into Mercer Advisors’ existing office in Columbus.
“Jim had a number of suitors interested in his business, as he should have,” according to Dave Baron, Mercer vice chairman. “He built a first class business and I admired the expertise in the ERISA space which complemented our own. We manage over $1 billion in ERISA plan assets and Jim and his team bring concentrated sophistication in a complex area building out for us an all-star ERISA team. … [This is a] great partnership for both parties.”
First Ohio serves 280 households focusing on high-net-worth clientele. Ryan said in a statement that he “hit it off” with Barton, who “understood the business in detail and also knew first-hand the challenges I was facing as a business owner. Together we walked through the pros and cons of a business combination and my conclusion was Mercer Advisors was a great fit for me, my staff, and most important, for our clients.”
In 2019, Mercer was the second biggest acquirer of RIAs, with nine deals, according to DeVoe & Co.’s year-end Deal Book. Mercer itself was the target of one of the largest transactions of the year, sold in part to Oak Hill Capital for $16.5 billion, DeVoe notes. Today the RIA is majority owned by Oak Hill and Genstar Capital and has $18.7 billion in assets under management.
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